Fork-crown cover-plate for bicycles



No Model.) Y 2 SheetsSheet 1.

I 0.3. SMITH.

FORK CROWN COVER PLATE'FOR BIUYGLES.

No; 588,190. Patented Aug. 17,1897.

(NoModeL) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2A 0. 3. SMITH. FORK GROWN COVER PLATE FOR BIGYGLES.

.Noi 588,190; Patented Aug. 17,1897.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES s. sMI'rII, OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN.

FORK-CROWN COVER-PLATE FO R BICYCLES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 588,190, dated August 1'7, 1897.

Applicationfiled August 6, 1896. Serial No. 601,861. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES S. SMITH, of Milwaukee, in the county of Milwaukee and State of Wisconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fork-Crown Cover-Plates for Bicycles; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, which will enable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

The main object of my invention is to diminish the thickness and weight of the crown plate or cover and to facilitate its attachment to the crown.

It consists, essentially, of a crown-plate formed on the edges with ears or spurs adapted to be clenched over the edges of the upper crown plate and to hold it securely and snugly thereon while it is brazed thereto.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective View of my improved crown plate or cover. Fig. 2 is a similar view of a front-fork crown to which the cover plate is applicable, and Fig. 3 is a like view of a finished crown to which the cover-plate is applied.

-Heretofore in the construction of forkcrowns of the class to which my improvement relates, in which the upper ends of the forkarms projectthrough or are exposed in the top of the'crowns, considerable difficulty and great annoyance have been experienced in brazing the cover-plates to the tops of the crowns on account of the tendency of such plates to buckle and springaway from the crowns during the brazing operation. For this reason quite thick and heavy plates have been employed without, however, obviating the difficulty above mentioned.

It is the design of my improved cover-plate not only to avoid the objections above noted, but also to reduce the thickness and weight of the plate. I

Referring to Fig. 1 of the drawings, A designates my improved cover-plate, which is cut or stamped from sheet metal in a form corresponding with the'contour of the crown to which it is to be applied, B, Fig. 2, representing such a crown, O C the upper portions of the fork sides or arms, and D the stem. The plate A is formed in the usual manner with a central opening to fit around the stem D. It is also formed on the edges at suitable intervals with ears or prongs aa, which are bent downwardly, as shown, and clenched over and under the edges of the top plate of crown B, thereby holding it firmly and snugly against the top of the crown while it is brazed thereto. After it has been brazed to the crown the prongs are filed off and the top of the crown appears to be made of a single plate, the cover-plate A hiding the upper ends of the fork-arms O O, forming a close joint around the stem D and producing a plain smooth-finished top to the crown, as shown in Fig. 3.

I claim 1. A' fork-crown cover-plate for bicycles, formed of sheet metal to the contour of the crown with an opening for the stem and with prongs on the outer edges adapted to be clenched over the edges of the crown-top and to hold it firmly in place thereon while it is brazed thereto, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

2. A fork-crown cover-plate for bicycles, formed of sheet metal to the contour of the crown top with a central opening fitting around the fork-stem, and with marginal downwardly bent prongs adapted to be clenched over the edges of the crown-top and to hold said cover-plate firmly in place thereon while it is brazed thereto, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I am my signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES S. SMITH. \Vitnesses:

CHAS. L. Goss, M. L. EMERY. 

